Mugen’s 1st Birthday

As I write this and look down at my feet, I see a 70 pound hunka chocolate love that was minutes ago running around my house at top speed after a green squeaky ball that makes a noise that sounds so distinctive that it has become known as “The Farty Ball”. There are two such balls in my house, both will send my chocolate chunk into a dive bombing frenzy the second they appear in the hands of a human.

His happiness over these kinds of things… makes my days worth waking up to.

The last year has been hard for us as a family, but I want to celebrate today as the first birthday of my best friend and confidant. Mugen always has a hug for me when I need it, he even knows that when I go to sit down in a couple of spots, I sit there because I’m feeling sad or bored and he will come join me, plant his butt next to my hip and lay his head on my shoulder and wait for my arms to wrap around him.

He also seems to have a knack for acting like a complete idiot when I really need to laugh and when that doesn’t work, he grabs one of my bras and runs around the house with it in his mouth. I swear to God that when I finally get it from him, he’s laughing his butt off in a way that only a puppy can.

He has been the best puppy a girl could ever ask for.

I cannot tell you how much he is loved. He came to us at a time when I was raw and bleeding and he stitched me back up with the wonder of watching him sleep on the floor. He ranks pretty high up there on the list of best things that have ever happened to me. There are not enough words to describe what he means to me and to my family.

His wild puppy antics have made the difference some days, between us living and just existing. He really does THAT much for us. He is there to greet my children as they come in the door from school every day and he happily does a bounce and a wiggle, in typical Lab fashion, while trying to eat their clothes so that he can drag them down to his level and lick their faces. He greets my husband with the same exuberance. Me, well, he won’t pull that crap on me. He waits for me to get to the kitchen counter and set my stuff down first. 😉

We’re still cooking him. But… man are we cooking with gas. Mugen is in the process of earning his CGC and while he failed the first test, the trainers have told me that I have every single right to be proud of the progress we’ve made. It is rare that they have a Lab in their classes that is as young as Mugen is that can actually pass Advanced Home Companion. He is ready to move into Rally and Obedience competition classes. He has been an exceptional puppy.